Wig form



March 24, 1970 J, SANFORD ET AL 3,501,847

WIG

Filed Dec. 26, 1967 I INVENTORS Jack C. Shh FORD J40: F. SfiNF'OED United States Patent 3,501,847 WIG FORM Jack C. Sanford, P.O. Box 634, Big Bear City, Calif.

92314, and Jack F. Sanford, 4475 Garden Highway, Sacramento, Calif. 95834 Filed Dec. 26, 1967, Ser. No. 693,237 Int. Cl. F26b 3/06; A45d 20/16 US. Cl. 34103 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE The disclosure comprises a structure for wig forming and treating, consisting of a hollow housing approximately simulating a human head and attached neck, the housing being built of multiple layers of open wire mesh of different hole sizes so that conventional pins used by 'wig makers for holding a 'wig on the form or housing will be capable of easy penetration but will be provided with a firm grip so that once in place they will not work out until finally removed by hand. The wig form moreover is provided with an open bottom as well as an open mesh construction so that when one or more of them are placed in a drier, filtered and dehumidified air can be passed into the forms at the bottom and then be emitted more or less uniformly throughout the area of the form where the wig is mounted, exhaust humidified air, which may still be warm being passed around drier jackets for the other wig forms, thereby to economize in heating but at the same time dry each of a multiple number of wigs uniformly.

Although wig making is centuries old and the practice of pinning a wig to a mold simulating the human head is just as old, wig forms in the past have uniformly been constructed of solid material and of such structure that the material would accept pins used in shaping and form of the wig during its construction and dressing. Various materials have been provided for forming the housing of the wig form, such as sized fabrics, stuffed with some adequate stuffing on the interior, and on some occasions wig forms have been made of material such as cork, which is solid clear through and which a wig can be readily pinned to. Because of the solid construction of previous wig forms drying the wig after dressing it has had to be entirely from the exterior. This is sometimes a relatively slow process because of the difliculty in getting warm dry air to penetrate to the underside of the wig on the form. Such drying is additionally nonuniform and difficult to control because thick portions cannot be dried as quickly as thin portions.

Further still, although many different kinds of current materials might be employed which might enable the wig maker to fasten the wig to the form by some means other than pinning, the practice of Wig making has been so firmly established that wig makers invariably insist upon pinning the wig to the form as being the most feasible fastening medium.

It is therefore among the objects of the invention to provide a new and improved wig making and treating structure which includes a hollow open mesh form or housing which nevertheless will accept pins and firmly hold them in place until they are removed by hand.

Another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved structure for wig making and treating which is hollow, light weight, open to the passage of air, constructed of materials which will not rust and deteriorate, and which once formed will filmly hold their shape and can be readily handled at all times.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved wig making and treating structure which is light in weight as well as durable, and wherein the spe- 3,501,847 Patented Mar. 24, 1970 cial construction made to accept pins can be confined to the areas of the form where pinning commonly takes place.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a new and improved structure for wig making and treating which includes a multiple number of drying cabinets all of which are capable of independently drying each wig uninfiuenced by the drying process of other wigs which are being subjected to drying at the same time.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists in the construction, arrangement, and combination of the various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained, as hereinafter set forth, pointed out in the appended claims and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of a wig form on a suitable mounting partially broken away to show the interior construction.

FIGURE 2 is a rear elevational view of the wig form of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary cross-sectional view of the material making up the wig form taken on the line 33 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary elevational view taken on the line 4-4 of FIGURE 1 with a portion peeled away to show interior construction.

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional View on the line 55 of FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 6 is a schematic longitudinal sectional view of a multiple chamber drying cabinet.

In an embodiment of the invention chosen for the purpose of illustration a wig form has been indicated generally by the reference character 10 and a drier generally by the reference character 11. The wig form includes an upper portion 12 simulating a human head and a lower portion 13 simulating the neck of a human, the lower portion being slightly exaggerated in length as a matter of working convenience. The wig form is constructed of a multiple layer open wire mesh. To give the form rigidity and stability, the entire upper and lower portions are constructed of a relatively heavy coarse mesh 14 throughout. The mesh 14 may be of coarse woven galvanized iron wire or a fabric structure having stiff heavy strands in different directions.

On the interior of the coarse mesh 14 there is an inside layer 15 of fine mesh and a matching outside layer 16 of similar fine mesh. These inside and outside layers are preferably pairs of matching sections such, for example, as a section 17 which extends over the frontal area, a section 18 at the nape of the neck, and a section 19 along the sides spanning the distance between nap and the frontal area. A dependable construction is one wherein the inside and outside layers are of relatively fine mesh wire cloth or fabric of open construction which can be readily formed so as to precisely conform to the contour of the coarse mesh layer wherever the fine mesh is applied. If the fine mesh is of wire fabric, it can be readilyfastened to the coarse mesh by soldering. Hence, it is possible to remove and replace the fine mesh if necessary by melting the soldered connection. Moreover, where the fine mesh is applied to critical portions only of the wig form as described, the outside layer may have a crimped exterior edge which will assist in holding the outside layer to its form and make it easy to fasten the layer to the coarse mesh. Occasions may require the entire interior and exterior of the coarse mesh covered with fine mesh layers.

Formed as described and particularly as shown in FIG- URES 3 and 5, it will be noted that the matching inside and outside sections of fine mesh are in a random pattern one with respect to the other. No special attempt may be made to keep the patterns random, because in the very forming of the layers to the contour of the wig form a random pattern will result. This is extremely helpful when a pin, like the pin 20, is inserted through the multiple layer construction. The pin is of such diameter that it is larger than the holes in the fine mesh so that there will be a grip provided on the exterior of the pin by both the inside layer and the outside layer. Since the holes will invariably be staggered to a degree one from another, there are two areas of frictional engagement between the pin and the multiple layer form. This is suflicient to firmly grip the pin once it is placed in position, but at the same time to readily release the pin when it is pulled out by hand. Further still, although there may be a degree of distortion from repeated pinnings and unpinnings, the mesh is such that the distortion tends to compensate as pins are applied at complete random and the gripping action will not be impaired as the result of repeated use.

Although wire mesh has been described as a very acceptable material for the inside and outside layers, it Will be appreciated that fabrics, in particular woven fabrics, of some of the currently available synthetic plastic resin materials of monofilament construction may be made use of. A good coarse mesh fabric is a No. 4 mesh screen, whereas a good fine mesh fabric is a No. 18 mesh screen. Random disposition of the inside and outside sections has been mentioned and this can be achieved with even greater assurance when one of the fine mesh layers is disposed at an angle of 45 degrees with respect to the other. Stainless steel mesh is particularly acceptable because of its rigidity and rust-proof characteristics.

To assist the wig maker in manipulating the wig on the form the structure is provided with a clamping device 25 which consists of a post section 26 and a clamp section 27. The clamp section is substantially a C-clamp having a threaded wing bolt 28. The post section is tapered and joined to the clamp section with a ball and socket joint 29 to provide universal motion, the ball and socket joint including a tightening piece 30 manipulated by a tightening handle 31. Inside of the lower portion of the wig form 13 is a hollow pocket 32, preferably made of the same coarse mesh as the remainder of the form, the pocket having an interior size adapted to receive the tapered post section 26.

For drying the wigs on the wig forms, the drier 11 is provided with a multiple number of cabinets 35, 36, 37 etc. Each cabinet has a tapered post 38 on which the wig form may be mounted while in the cabinet, and an ample chamber 39 for the free circulation of air around the wig form. A filter and heater unit 40- of substantially conventional construction warms and dehumidifies the air as it is pulled by a fan 41 and passed to a tapered manifold 42 which supplies all of the cabinets. Air passing into the respective cabinets is directed upwardly through a collar 43 into the interior of the wig form from which it passes outwardly through the open mesh into the chamber 39. From the chamber there is an outlet passage 44 from the cabinet 35 which extends around the exterior of the cabinet 36'. An outlet passage 45 from the cabinet 36 in turn communicates with the exterior of the cabinet 37 on its Way to an exhaust manifold 46. The arrangement just described is repeated for as many cabinets as there may be in a group supplied in a drier.

From the foregoing it will be clear that the open mesh construction of the wig form has a multiple purpose, namely that of providing effective pinning of the Wig to the form while the wig is being dressed and combed and providing for a very efiective uniform drying of the wig on the form once it is completely dressed. Since the cabinets are independently operated, wig forms may be inserted and removed from the sepa ate cabinets as need be Wi h- 4 out the drying operation being interrupted from the other wigs dried at the same time.

While the invention has herein been shown and described in what is conceived to be a practical and effective embodiment, it is recognized that departures may be made therefrom within the scope of the invention, Which is not to be limited to the details disclosed herein but is to be accorded the full scope of the claims so as to embrace any and all equivalent devices.

Having described the invention, What is claimed as new in support of Letters Patent is:

1. A structure for wig making and treating comprising a three dimension wig form having portions respectively of shape and size simulating a human head and neck, the material of said form comprising a layer of relatively coarse mesh wire cloth material, areas of said form where pins are required to penetrate during the mounting and treating of a wig on said form having inside and outside layers comprising matching sections of cloth material of open construction and of relatively finer mesh than said coarse mesh wire cloth, strands comprising said sections being of relatively stiff resilient consistency, said sections being in close face to face contact with adjacent opposite faces of said coarse mesh wire cloth and means fastening said sections to the coarse mesh wire cloth, said sections in cooperation with said coarse mesh wire cloth being adapted to firmly retain Wig mounting pins in releasable engagement therewith when said pins pierce through all three of said layers.

2. A structure according to claim 1 wherein said strands comprising said matching sections are of non-fibrous monofilament construction.

3. A structure according to claim 1 wherein said strands comprising said matching sections are of metal wire and said sections are anchored in metal to metal engagement with said coarse mesh wire cloth.

4. A structure according to claim 1 wherein there is a pocket on the inside surface of the portion simulating a human neck and a mounting stand having a post section removably received in said pocket and a clamp section secured to said post section with a universal joint, and a tightener for said universal joint.

5. A structure according to claim 1 wherein said structure has an open bottom, a pocket on the surface of said neck portion and a drying cabinet having a plurality of chambers for a multiple number of said structures, a manifold in communication with a source of Warm dry air, an individual Warm dry air supply passage between said manifold and each said neck portions, and a separate outlet passage from each, one or more of said outlet passages being in contact with the exterior of at least one other of said chambers.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 568,874 10/1896 Pease. 2,951,621 9/1960 Cheney 22366 3,188,752. 6/1965 Skinner 34104 3,198,408 8/1965 Benner 22366 3,298,113 1/1967 Friedman 34219 3,320,681 5/1967 Watlington 34-90 3,424,419 1/1969 Siegel 269- FOREIGN PATENTS 1,106,202 7/ 1955 France.

FREDERICK L. MATTESON, JR., Primary Examiner R. A. DUA, Assistant Examiner U.S. c1. X.R 22 -66; 7 

